Week two of the Fantasy Baseball season begins this Monday. The sample sizes are really too small to make a relatively accurate prediction but it’s still fun to try! There is much to cover so lets get started.
Interleague Matchups
1). Washington Nationals away with the Boston Red Sox (Monday-Wednesday)
2). Detroit Tigers away with the Pittsburgh Pirates (Monday-Wednesday)
3). Seattle Mariners away with the Los Angeles Dodgers (Monday-Wednesday)
4). Atlanta Braves away with the Toronto Blue Jays (Friday-Sunday)
Scheduled Two Start Pitchers
Keep in mind that these are subject to change so check the listings daily.
James Paxton (Mon, Sun), David Buchanan (Tue, Sun), Michael Pineda (Mon, Sun)
Eddie Butler (Mon, Sun), Jordan Zimmerman (Mon, Saturday), Rubby De La Rosa (Mon, Sat), Danny Duffy (Mon, Sun), Shelby Miller (Mon, Sun), Rick Porcello (Mon, Sun), Matt Harvey (Tue, Sun), Trevor May (Mon, Sun), Daniel Norris (Tue-Sun), Scott Kazmir (Mon, Sun), Aaron Harang (Mon, Sat), Gerrit Cole (Mon, Sun), Chris Heston (Mon, Sat), Shane Green (Tue, Sun), Brandon McCarthy (Mon, Sun), Ross Detwiler (Mon, Sun), Scott Feldman (Mon, Sun), Jacob deGrom (Mon, Sat), Wei-Yin Chen (Mon, Sun), Jeremy Hellickson (Tue, Sun), Stephen Strasberg (Tue, Sun), Jake Odorizzi (Mon, Sat), Mat Latos (Mon, Sat), Mike Leake (Mon, Sun), Adam Wainwright (Mon, Sun), Anibal Sanchez (Mon, Sat), Matt Garza (Mon, Sun), Tom Koehler (Tue, Sun), Matt Shoemaker (Tue, Sun), Jon Lester (Tue, Sun), R.A. Dickey (Mon, Sat), Tim Hudson (Tue, Sun), Andrew Cashner (Mon, Sun)
Possible Starting Pitching Streaming Options Monday thru Thursday
All pitchers here are available in at least 75 percent of all major Fantasy Baseball Leagues.
Monday April 13: Aaron Harang of the Philadelphia Phillies takes on the offensively challenged New York Mets. Don’t let his 50% fly ball rate scare you; Citi Field is a great pitchers park.
Tuesday April 14: Tom Koehler of the Miami Marlins travels to Atlanta to take on the red hot Atlanta Braves. Atlanta roughed him up a bit in his last start but you know what they say about paybacks, right?
Wednesday April 15: Drew Pomeranz of the Oakland A’s heads to Houston to face the Astros. Pomeranz was spectacular in his season debut. Look for more of the same against the Astros.
Thursday April 16: I told you last week Jason Vargas was my main go to streaming guy last season and he shined in his first start of the season. He’ll do the same thing Thursday when his Kansas City Royals take on the light hitting Twins at home.
Pitchers on the Waiver Wire
All pitchers listed are available in at least 50 percent of all major Fantasy Baseball Leagues. As always check your league waiver wire for these and other more suitable options.
Trevor May SP Minnesota: May just got called up to replace injured SP Ricky Nolasco. He has two starts this week against the Royals on Monday and then on Sunday against the Indians. Last season May struck out almost nine hitters per nine innings and a walk rate of nearly four a game. He might be a good deeper league option this week especially if you need strikeouts.
Trevor Bauer SP Cleveland: Bauer started his season off with a bang giving up zero hits while striking out 11. He did walk five Astros but got the win as well as a quality start. His next outing will be this coming Wednesday against the White Sox. Bauer should be owned right now in most if not all standard leagues.
Brandon McCarthy SP Dodgers: The Diamondbacks roughed him up a bit this past week but he does have two starts this week one being on Monday against the Mariners and on Sunday against Colorado. He’ll be a good source of strikeouts in both games and is probably better suited as a deeper league option for now.
Available Closers
The most volatile position in baseball is the closer. Here a few names to keep your eye on this week. Each of these selections is available in fifty percent of all major Fantasy Baseball Leagues.
Joakim Soria RP Tigers: Joe Nathan is out and for now Soria is doing the closing for the Tigers. He has picked up a save this week so maybe Soria can help you out until Joe Nathan returns.
Juerys Familia RP Mets: For now Familia is the Mets closer. He has managed a hold so far and has recorded three strikeouts. He’ll be there until either he blows it or either Bobby Parnell or Jenrry Meija comes back from injury.
Edward Mujica RP Boston: Mujica has already blown a save this season but he’ll still be the guy in Beantown until Koji Uehara returns from injury. Maybe Mujica can get his act together enough to pick up a few saves while we wait for Koji.
Available Oakland Athletics for Week Two
The following Oakland A’s are widely available and could make a Fantasy impact.
Drew Pomeranz SP: Great season opener with six strikeouts and zero earned runs and a win in seven innings of work. He’s scheduled to start Wednesday in Houston against the Astros.
Marcus Semien SS 2B: Batting .333 and driving in five runs is nothing to sneeze at. He’s even scored a couple of runs as well. His dual eligibility is a bonus and I’m kind of surprised he’s so available. Great value pick for Daily Fantasy Baseball also.
Sam Fuld OF: He’s going to get plenty opportunities until Josh Reddick comes back. Currently batting .412 and has scored four runs. He’d make a nice deeper league option for sure.
Ike Davis 1B: Beginning Monday the A’s are scheduled to face five righties in a row so Davis will have quite a few at bats to add to what he did on Friday night against Seattle.
Waiver Wire Suggestions for Week Two
Each of these waiver wire suggestions are available in at least fifty percent of all major Fantasy Baseball leagues. Please check your individual league waiver wire for these and other more suitable options.
Mark Teixeira 1B Yankees: His batting average sucks but he has belted two home runs already this season. More importantly he seems to be healthy.
Adam Lind 1B Brewers: Lind is currently hitting .615 with four runs batted in and a homerun. This guy is red hot!
Michael Morse 1B OF Marlins: Dual eligible and still on the waiver wire. Finally drove in a couple of runs and is hitting .315. Grab him before he is gone.
Brett Lawrie 2B 3B Oakland: Batting just .250 and yet to drive in a run isn’t that great of a start. He’ll heat up and when he does you’ll wish he was on your roster.
Brandon Phillips 2B Reds: Phillips is off to a slow start. While the season sample size is small his career reads like a buffet of success. Don’t write him off just yet.
Mike Moustakas 3B Royals: Hitting .308 this early is a good sign. With only one bomb and just one RBI it could be worse. With Moustakas it has been worse.
Alex Rodriguez 3B Yankees: Love him or hate him the guy can hit. He’s hit a bomb and drove in a couple of runs. Not bad for a guy who missed all of 2014.
Jose Iglesias SS Tigers: Batting .600 with an RBI and a couple of stolen bases. He’s their everyday shortstop and this could be a sign of good things to come.
Brandon Crawford SS Giants: Only batting .238 but has hit a bomb and driven in three runs. Like Iglesias he’s their everyday guy and is bound to help someone out there.
Jed Lowrie SS 2B Houston: He’s hit a bomb already, driven in a couple of runs and scored a couple as well. Batting over .300 and all these things are very good to see.
Michael Taylor OF Washington: Batting .294 with a bomb and three runs batted in. He’ll be playing lots until Jayson Werth and Denard Span return so ride him while he’s hot.
Good luck this week Fantasy Baseball owner!
